I don’t want to shout too loud about this least I end up destroying the magic but this place is paradise. I have been here for one week and am continuously in awe of my surroundings. The beaches stretch gloriously from North to South, the waves are clean, glassy and green, smiles beam the sun belts down and the food is forever a wonderful mystery. The joys of Sri Lanka are endless and I can’t help but feel slightly guilty at enjoying the pleasure of it all. Most of my days follow the same lazy flip flopping pattern. I wake at around 6.30am go for a run, return grab my board and head out for a surf. By about 9am I have had about as much heat as I can handle and so wander in for a tropical fruit breakfast. All hours until 4pm are spent either in a hammock or in the shade of a palm tree where I can be found reading, dozing and enjoying the magic. Dragons skulk by; coconut trees are fearlessly climbed, picked, chopped and carried, bright-feathered birds swoop and sing, butterflies dance, Time oozes on. By 4pm I am usually prepared to venture back out to the surf for a few more waves and always happy to enjoy another epic sunset before dinner.
The Sinhalese are open and are always happy to help. For the first time since Nepal I have been able to chat happily with the local people. On arriving in Colombo I checked into the Young Women’s Catholic Association (YWCA) for one night. After a drought of human contact and female company, I was overjoyed to share breakfast with a dozen other young Sinhalese girls. The women here are happy to stop and talk to you in the street something seldom seen on my journey through India.
Beyond the rosy ice pop eating, beer swilling life of the tourist however is a country in the grip of a bitter civil war. A state of emergency has been declared in Tamil areas and the British Foreign Office website gives you the impression that you may quite possibly be shot the minute you walk of the plane. Somewhere between these two extremes, the battle goes on slowly throttling the livelihoods on those dependent on the tourist trade. This is not the only scar that the country bares; the effects of the Tsunami are everywhere evident along the West and South coasts. Hundreds of graveyards scatter the roadsides, washed out and abandoned buildings the foundations of what had been. Slowly the homes, hotels, schools and restaurants are returning. The smiling eyes along this coast have witnessed catastrophic destruction, its families much loss. It is a pleasure to see the results of the global effort to rebuild. Shiny new boats support names of sponsors: The Kilkenny Fire Service, Brighton and Sussex College, George Street Primary school, Porthgain 2. Towns have been remolded and support the flags of the donors. There is still much to do here.
One new addition to my travels has been conversation. Niall has joined me in the search for the perfect wave and we have made our way down to the town of Midigama. We plan to enjoy the surf while we can and if we ever do tire of this beachside paradise we have plans to hire some motorbikes (don’t tell mam!) and make our way through the Jungle to the town of Kandy and the pilgrims rest of Adams peak. Until that time if you are wondering what I am up to it more often then not involves and Hammock or a surfboard.